COLUMBUS, Ohio – A new piece of legislation introduced in the Ohio House seeks to temporarily freeze property taxes for certain property owners in response to sharp increases in property valuations across the state.
House Bill 89, sponsored by Republican State Representative Jean Schmidt of Loveland in Clermont County, aims to roll back property tax levels to those seen in 2022. The bill targets properties that were on the tax rolls in 2022 or 2023 and have been continuously owned by the same individual since January 1, 2022.
If enacted, the temporary reduction would apply to real property taxes in the 2024 tax year and to manufactured or mobile homes in 2025.
Schmidt, whose district includes areas that saw property valuations spike by as much as 43% in 2023, testified Thursday before the House Ways and Means Committee in support of the bill.
The legislation comes as part of a broader legislative effort to rein in property taxes statewide. Earlier this year, the Ohio House passed a separate bill—House Bill 28—that would eliminate replacement tax levies, which often lead to higher taxes and voter confusion. That bill is now awaiting action in the Ohio Senate.
The urgency behind these efforts follows a series of unsuccessful attempts last year to modify how the state tax commissioner calculates property values. One notable proposal, a budget amendment to dramatically reduce property value increases in Butler County, passed the Senate but failed in the House.
If House Bill 89 moves forward through the legislative process and gains the approval of both the Senate and Governor Mike DeWine, eligible property owners could see significant tax relief in the near future.
The House Ways and Means Committee is expected to continue reviewing the bill in the coming weeks.
